Hi friends,
Today is Sunday again and I have so much to do blog wise, beginning with answering to all comments!!!! Because I just took some time out of it for these last three days. But first let’s talk about my week! As usual I am linking this up to The Sunday Post graciously hosted by Kimberly @caffeinatedreviewer.
In my private life this week
Well the big news is that I am now beginning some holiday for three blissful weeks! Hurray!
I love my job but commuting in winter is tiring. I don’t like the month of November as I leave the house in the dark and come back in the dark with no perspective of Christmas yet to lighten up my mood. So I always try to take two to three weeks off, see the daylight, rest and just enjoy life.
As a consequence this week I came back late from work and with few light I went to bed early without replying to your comment!
Bad, bad blogger behavior I know but I promise to do better in the coming week.
My holiday began free of activities but they are already filling in with some fun activities.
Tomorrow will be lunching with two cousins that I so love but rarely see. The day after tomorrow will be sushi restaurant and theater with a friend. On November 1st I have a date with my mom to go on my father’s tomb and visit my godmother plus a date with my daughter to go watch Downtown Abbey (we both love the series). Then a neighbor offered to guide me to a pop art exhibition. And I plan on visiting another friend of mine who’s currently at home as she fell in the stairs and has her leg in a cast.
See?
I planned on doing nothing but feel more and more like my very busy retired of a mom! I swear she is never home and is always with some friend at an exhibition, the theater or having classes about Japanese culture and what not.
I want to be my mom when I am old 😀
Oh and let’s not forget my plan to make more candles trying new techniques. I brainstormed with a young man at our local art shop for one hour to find the best technique!
Last great news: THIS MADE MY DAY TODAY!
I have waited for a Scarcity of Condors for more than one year and Suanne finally completed this story! I am so excited to begin this ARC in the coming weeks!
On the blog this week (click on the picture to read the post)
I have reviewed two books but read two more and hope to publish the reviews next week.
One book was good but not great Stronger than a Bronze Dragon. I don’t know why I was not enthralled like so many especially as this audiobook was narrated by one of my favorite narrators Emily Woo Zeller.
The second read is one of my bests of 2019 and finally put me in the Leigh Bardugo’s bandwagon: Ninth House. Just read it!
Top 5 Tuesday was back and I posted about my favorite audiobooks, something I would never have been able to do one year ago as I had never listened to a single audiobook!
And Thursday’s discussion was all about wondering if only #ownvoices books were allowed to talk about marigalized people or not. My answer is clearly NO and it was a reaction to a friend’s comment on Instagram.
In the blogosphere and literary world plus my music of the day
If you want to know which spooky read your should try this Halloween, take this test on Riveted by Simons Teen!
And if I did not comment back as I should have this week I have found many interesting blog posts!
Sam @weliveandbreathebooks discuss how some criticism about characters being “so young” in YA is grating her nerves (I can relate)
https://weliveandbreathebooks.blogspot.com/2019/10/discussion-that-rubs-me-wrong-way.html
May is also talking about YA books and YA portraying knowing she is still a teen/YA herself
https://foreverandeverly.wordpress.com/2019/10/21/teens-ya-realistic-hyporcisy/
Sam (again!) has been invited on Dani’s blog!
https://perspectiveofawriter.com/2019/10/22/guest-post-sam-we-live-and-breathe-books/
Michelle asks if the author’s personal behavior should affect our reading choices
https://chellesbookramblings.wordpress.com/2019/10/23/books-paying-for-the-sins-of-their-authors/
Marie @drizzleandhurricanebooks discusses about “how to make it as a book blogger”
Beth @booknest also has a very interesting discussion about how reading can benefit your mental health (something I am certain we all already suspected 😀 )
https://booksnest.co.uk/post/how-reading-books-can-benefit-your-mental-health/
Pepper Winters wrote one of the most honest posts from a writer: she does not like all her books!
https://pepperwinters.com/2019/10/22/things-a-writer-should-never-confess/
Now for the music of the day, I went to my aquagym class this morning and I had so much fun with this one! I also love the lyrics because we don’t need to be a super hero to get some love.
That was my week! How was yours? I promise to answer promptely today and tomorrow!!!
Thanks for reading!
Sophie
Woo, 3 weeks! Enjoy!
P.S. i’m so jelly 😀 never had 3 weeks off, but it sounds awesome.
Your mom has the coolest of lives!!!! It makes me want to retire already too hahahah And it was interesting to hear about your perception of November. It really is a month between two big “Holidays” (halloween and Christmas) with nothing to really look forward to. At least in the States they have Thanksgiving in the middle of November.. But yes… the dark is so overwhelming during this month! 😮 Take care, Sophie! 😀
3 weeks off sounds wonderful! I hope you have a wonderful time. I wouldn’t worry too much about taking time off from blogging/comments… Take your break and catch up later. (I’ll try and follow my own advice too! lol)
I can totally understand why you want some off time in November. Same here. Everything is turning grey. In the morning it is dark, during the day it barely gets brighter when the sky is full of clouds and you never know if it starts to rain or not and then all the sudden the day is over and all you see outside is darkness. Not my month, to be honest. Have a great time off work and happy reading.
Your mom sounds awesome! My parents are retired and they always have stuff going on! (tho they have a 12 year old so that adds a lot to their schedule) I hope you enjoy your three week vacation! It sounds like it will be the good kind of busy! <3
Thank you Brittany!!!
Wow, 3 weeks is great, enjoy the time and make the best of it, and look forward to seeing those candles, should you make any. Meanwhile, last week was a crazy week where the HD on my iMac died and then, my MacBook Air wouldn’t open (bad cable apparently). So I’ve been running around the last 10 days trying to get all that sorted.
Alexandra I hate it when I have problems with my computer! And it makes me realize how dependent and addicted I’ve become!
Enjoy your holiday, Sophie – hope you have some time to read!
Thank you Teri!!!
It sounds as if you might need a vacation after your vacation!
Enjoy your time off, and have a great reading week
Oooh a vacation after my vacation that’s a brilliant idea!!!! LOL
I feel the same way about November, it’s just a dreary month. I hope you enjoy your holiday- sounds great!
Good luck with the candles!
Also yay for the quiz because I feel like I need some good Halloween suggestions. Spookier the better!!
Thank you Greg! And I wonder which book you’ll end up with 😉
Hopefully you get some sunshine in your life soon!!!
Thank you Samantha!
I hope you have a wonderful time while you’re off from work. Sounds like you have a lot of fun activities planned. 🙂
Thank you Suzanne!!
I am not even sure I would be able to go back to work after three weeks off. I hope you enjoy every single second of your vacation.
Thank you Sam and yes going back to work after a long break is tricky!
Three weeks off sounds absolutely divine! And you already have some nice outings lined up. My mom has started taking a few classes (like your mom). A local church has a very active seniors program and right now she’s signed up for a weekly history class as well as a trivia class! 🙂
Love that sound by Chainsmokers/Coldplay!
Tanya @ Girl Plus Books
Ha Tanya I think it’s fantastic that our moms stay young nurturing their spirit!
3 weeks off sounds like total bliss! I have this week off as its school holidays but my son has planned Halloween stuff so I’ll be busy doing that, sigh!!!!
Well Caro I’ll miss all the halloween stuff that I did with the kids you know… Anyway enjoy!
Thank you! We got our giant pumpkin today, not looking forward to all the gunk from that!!!
Three weeks off sounds like heaven! Enjoy, Sophie! 🙂
Thank you Rachel!
That sounds like an amazing vacation! I hope it’s incredible!!
Thank you Sarah! It was already a good start today!
Three weeks sounds like heaven! When my daughter’s school term ends we will have about 3.5 weeks in December and I’m looking forward to staying home, working on our craft projects and maybe finally finishing unpacking.
I am listening to Ninth House on audio and am enjoying it so far. Have an amazing weeks with friends, family and great books!
Anne – Books of My Heart Here is my Sunday Post
Thank you Anne and enjoy Ninth House!
Ooooh enjoy your holiday! 3 weeks sounds like pure bliss.
Indeed Genesis! Thank you <3
Three weeks does sound liie bliss! I’d take three days/ LOL I hope you have some fun and can fit in everything you want to do:)
I know you’d take three days because Laura you are always so busy!!!
Sounds like you’ve been super busy! I feel like you. We’re leaving for vacation Tuesday morning, but we won’t relax at all. Even with no plans yet for one day, I’m sure we’ll be on the go from morning until late night. I hope you have a great week!
And I hope that you’ll have fun too!!
Thank you! I’ll be exhausted, but it’s always fun. 🙂